Most people would thank their teachers or parents for a haul of two A*s and two As at A-level, but when Ony Akpenyi was awarded those results for chemistry, psychology, maths and biology last Thursday, she thanked Britain. The 18-year-old Harlow College student only moved to the UK from Nigeria two years ago, and says she didn't do at all well at school until she arrived here.

"Being a young person in the UK is amazing," says Ony. "I struggled at school in Nigeria, not because I was stupid but because there's no help. Teachers there don't encourage you to get good grades, as they do here. There are no libraries or free computers. Students just have to work by themselves.

"My dad and mum didn't go to uni, and the school system when I came to England was completely different to anything I'd seen in the past. I was really shy and nervous, and a lot of what I studied was completely new, but my teachers were so supportive. They gave me extra work, and different textbooks. They showed me articles and websites with more questions and helped me get old exam papers."

Ony didn't apply to university before A-levels "because I thought I might fail my exams". But her dream is to be a doctor, and she is now tackling the UKcat and Bmat medical school aptitude tests. The teenager is planning to learn Spanish and Chinese in her gap year, and also hopes to find a part-time job in a care home. This autumn, she plans to apply to Cambridge, King's College London, and Newcastle and Manchester universities. But despite her stellar results, Ony says: "I still don't feel that confident. I spent the whole morning of results day on [online student forum] The Student Room, and there are loads of people getting good results, and loads planning to apply for medicine."

It is, the teenager adds, "a bit depressing to be in Britain right now, when young people have been destroying their own communities. They don't realise how good they have it. When I came here I took everything I could get – the books at the library, the internet, all free – I couldn't believe it. I don't understand why young people complain. They just don't realise how amazing Britain is."

Although Matthew Simmons reached the grades his teachers predicted – A in government & politics, B in business studies and C in history – he missed his university offers. The 18-year-old's heart was set on studying politics and economics at either Sussex or Kent, and both the firm and insurance offers he accepted demanded higher grades. "I'd always thought I would exceed my predicted grades," says the student at All Saints Catholic school & technology college in Dagenham. "But the morning of results day, I woke up at 4am in sweats. I checked Ucas at six, and learned that I'd missed my AAB offer to read politics and economics at Sussex University."

The Ucas page didn't say anything about Matthew's ABB offer from Kent University, his insurance. But after a nerve-wracking journey to school, he learned he had missed that too. Matthew phoned Kent and was told to enter Clearing. Once he was had done so and was armed with a Clearing number, he phoned Kent back to ask about a place on its politics and international relations course. "Luckily, I recognised the name of the tutor on the phone – we'd met and talked about the different modules at the open day. I knew all about the course, and she offered me a place. It was, says Matthew, "a rollercoaster day — but it ended on an up".

His career ambition is to go into politics, "not be a politician, but to work for a thinktank or as a civil servant. I realised at school that you have to work hard to get anywhere, life's not just going to come to you. Now I hope uni will give me new opportunities to do well in the future."

Tanya Spence Kelly achieved ABC in her A-levels in photography, business and media, which she took at Gower College, Swansea. She didn't apply to university and is unsure about what she'll do in the next few years. "I had no idea what career path to pursue when I had to choose A-levels," says Tanya, who is 18. "I tried to seek advice from teachers and careers advisers, but no one was very helpful.

"My mum and dad didn't go, and I feel like people without a family history of going to university do miss out on advice. But I don't think uni is crucial. My parents didn't even finish school, but now own a really successful road-marking business."

Tanya was pleased with her A-level results, but admits: "They didn't mean as much to me as to everyone else – they were worried about missing their grades for uni, but it didn't matter to me.

I think Britain over-emphasises formal education. I do so many things outside of school, like volunteering for a youth club, and running my own photography business taking pictures at weddings and for modelling portfolios, but everyone just talks about A-levels and uni. If I was to go to uni it would mean building up loads of debt with no guarantee of a job. And most people I know who've been through uni go into jobs that don't need the degree. My dad employs a photography graduate, and now all he does is paint roads. I'm going to apply for jobs in call centres and hope to work my way up."

On results day Olivia Davies was woken up by her beeping phone announcing an email that read, "Welcome to the University of Liverpool", her first choice.

"I realised I'd got my grades, and then I saw I'd received my fresher welcome pack in the post, so I was really excited even before going to school," she says.

The 18-year-old, who studied at St Julie's Catholic high in Liverpool and achieved two As and a B in geography, art and English language, applied to study geography because she wanted to travel. So it's ironic that her new uni is just 10 minutes down the road from her Merseyside home.

"I applied to Liverpool because I loved the sound of the course there, but I still want to get the full uni experience, so I'm going to live in halls," she explains. Six of Olivia's cousins have also attended universities in Liverpool, so she is following a family tradition.

The teenager looks back at school happily. "I think the education system rewards those who work hard," she says. "This idea that came from the riots, that there are no opportunities for kids, is wrong. I don't think it matters what school you go to. Like me, all of my cousins who have gone to uni didn't go to private schools and they've done really well. I'm excited for the future. I'm sure there will be lots of opportunities with a geography degree."

Like Olivia, Jade Callender learned that her grades were good enough to meet her Bath Spa university offer before opening the crucial envelope. "I woke up about eight and rushed to get to school," the 18-year-old Marine Academy Plymouth student explains. "And when I got there, the teacher said, 'Congratulations, Jade', so I knew I couldn't have done badly! That made it a lot easier to open the envelope. I found I'd got a C in English literature A-level and a double distinction in performing arts Btec."

That was more than enough for Jade's conditional offer for a degree in performing arts. Her career ambition is to be an actress, but Jade believes there's too much pressure on students to obsess about their careers. "There's a huge emphasis in schools on making a good impression to employers even from a young age," she says. "I took part in 'stocks and shares', a business group arranged by school, just because it would look good on my CV, not because I wanted to do it. I think stressing the importance of finding a job all the time can stop pupils finding out what they really want to do in life."